John Grant, a man from Denver, sang in a band called The Czars. They were at times incredible and yet the sole reason if I am honest, for working with them was John Grant. He just does have one of the best male voices out there. Up with Neil Young, Robi...

John Grant, a man from Denver, sang in a band called The Czars. They were at times incredible and yet the sole reason if I am honest, for working with them was John Grant. He just does have one of the best male voices out there. Up with Neil Young, Robin Pecknold, Josh Tillman, Scott Walker... I could go on. His voice is so beautiful it makes you cry. It just does.

When The Czars broke up, John moved up to New York for a change of scenery and found himself playing support to Flaming Lips and Midlake on a few USA shows. Well they became very good pals and Midlake became determined, nay obsessed with helping John out, recognising like me that it was close to a crime that John remained unknown outside a very small cult number. So they brought him to their hometown of Denton, Texas, and so he lived there for some months, working with them all on his solo record, in the spare moments when they weren't working on their own new album.